So when pitchers Noah Huggins, Dominic Anguiano, Tanner Bell, Marc Vela, Jack Williams and Christian Thompson, who grew up playing together on the youth levels, had a chance to play for 1993 Cy Young winner Jack McDowell, it was a no-brainer.

“Jack has helped us so much,” said Huggins, a 6-foot-6, 250-pound senior right-hander, who is headed to Point Loma Nazarene next season. “We feed off him, and we feed off each other.

“We’re very competitive. We try and outdo each other, but in a good way. We try and build off the last outing.”

The building blocks most certainly are in place.

The Mustangs are 15-1 and ranked No. 2 in the county entering Avocado East League play this week. And they’ve done it with pitching.

The staff ERA is 0.74. In 113 2/3 innings, San Dieguito pitchers have allowed just 68 hits and walked 35. Opposing hitters are batting just .185.

The staff has allowed just five extra-base hits — two doubles and three triples. And the Mustangs aren’t picking on the weak sisters of San Diego County.

The Mustangs have three shutouts as a staff and have allowed one run in nine other games. San Dieguito’s lone loss was 1-0 to La Costa Canyon.

“The chemistry here is so good,” said Anguiano, the lone left-hander on the staff. “We’re very much a team. We compete against each other, but we root for the other guy to do well.”

The chemistry part is a product of years together.

“We’ve been together since Little League,” Bell said. “The main reason we came to San Dieguito is to play with these teammates and to play for Jack.

“We all had the choice to come here or go to La Costa Canyon. We don’t have anything against LCC. It’s a good school and a great program. But we chose to come here.”

McDowell, whose son Lucas is a senior outfielder at SDA, loves what he’s doing.

“I’m having a blast,” McDowell said. “We have big-time depth on the pitching staff. No pitching staff is good without a good catcher, and we have a great one in Joe Stefanki. He really handles this staff.

“Every kid here had the choice of where to go to school. Of course we’re happy to have them.

“We’ve had La Costa Canyon guys at our camps, and they decided not to come here. And that’s OK. There’s room for both programs.”

JACK'S DIAMONDS

A look at San Dieguito pitchers who’ve appeared in games this season with comments from coach Jack McDowell:

Marc Vela, Sr., RHP

5-0, 0.66 ERA, 32 IP, 6 BB, 33 K

“Marc was a catcher when we got him, but we thought he’d make a good pitcher if we could develop some secondary pitches. He’s our hardest thrower, but his slider is his best weapon. It’s short and quick with good downward tilt. He’ll pitch in college.”

Noah Huggins, Sr., RHP

4-0, 0.20 ERA, 35 IP, 11 BB, 37 K

“As a freshman he had command of three pitches, and he has gotten better. I asked Noah’s dad one favor when Noah got here. I asked him not to touch Noah’s delivery because it’s perfect. He has a good feel for pitching and repeats his delivery. This season, he has turned his changeup into a splitter.”

Dominic Anguiano, Sr., LHP

2-0, 1.24 ERA, 11 1/3 IP, 9 BB, 6 K

“Dom came to us as a hitter, a first baseman. After his sophomore season you could tell he’d be successful on the mound. Finally, he came to me and said he wanted to get better. That’s what I wanted to hear. We sped up his motion and his command and stuff have jumped dramatically. He has two plus pitches — a curve and knuckleball, and it’s a hard knuckler out of his fastball slot. He jammed his shoulder diving back into a base last season, so we babied him a little early this season. But he’s ready to go now.”

Tanner Bell, Sr., RHP

0-1, 1.91 ERA, 7 1/3 IP, 2 BB, 4 K

“Tanner would be a top-line starter on another team, but he gets a little lost here. He throws a fastball and slider and we’re developing a change. He has a rubber arm, so we’ve been bringing him along as a closer.”

Jack Williams, Jr., RHP

4-0, 1.22 ERA, 23 IP, 7 BB, 19 K

“Jack has really jumped up. He’s stronger and more athletic now. He only gave up one run all winter, so we figured he had a chance to help us. He has really turned the corner.”

Christian Thompson, Jr., RHP

0-0, 1 save, 5 IP, 0 BB, 2 K

“He has been a pleasant surprise. He throws hard and hides the ball well. His problem has been consistency. When he throws strikes, he’s nails.”